Investing in mutual funds? Choose SIPs

Are you aware of the investment options available in the market? How best can you plan your finances?

What are the crieria for evaluating an investment option?

Are mutual funds profitable investment options? When and how should one buy mutual funds?

In an hour-long chat on rediff.comon Wednesday, financial planning expert Trideep Choudhary offered some valuable tips. Here is the transcript:

Trideep Choudhary says, Hi All, Welcome to the chat.

Archana asked, Hi Trideep.....Please tell me with a small amount like 1 lakh rupees where I can invest...except insurance policies & mutual fundsTrideep Choudhary answers, at 2010-02-17 12:58:03you could invest in bank FDs, post office MIS, Tax Free Bonds etc. Howevr do note that if for low risk investments the returns would be commensurately lower too.
suppandi asked, hello sir,I'm planning to invest 1Lakh. Can you please suggest me which FD is best? (time frame 3-4yrs)Trideep Choudhary answers, there is a possibility of the deposit rates being hiked and hence my advise wouild be to park your money ion savings bank account with sweep in facility and invest in FDs post the rate hike. In corporate FDs we advise for HDFC Ltd Systematic Saving Plan (SSP), which will pay variable interest rates on recurring deposits to investors.
santhosh asked, I have few units of reliance pharma mutual fund exactly invested 1 year before and now it shows nearly 50% profit. Is it right time to sell or hold it for some more time.Trideep Choudhary answers, you can book profit but do not exit.
modink asked, I have recently invested Rs15000/- in Tata Equity PE fund Trigger 10%,Rs15000/-in Fidelity India Value fund and Rs.30000/-inSundaram BNP Paribas PSU OPP. Fund. My time horizon shall be 5 years. Whether Investment is right or should I Exit?Trideep Choudhary answers, Although we are aeverse to thematic funds, but your time horizon allows you to stay invested with an otherwise good choice of funds.
ravi asked, Hello sir, please tell me investmant apart from shar &insurance investment rs one lakh. shortterm period.Trideep Choudhary answers, investment horizon less than 6 months should go for liquid plus funds, for a longer tenure upto 1 year you can go for floating rate fund
sundara asked, currently i am doing SIP in Kotak opportunities 1000, DSP TIGER - 1000, Principal Emerging BlueChip - 1000, ICICI Discovery phase - 1000; are these funds are o.k? shall i make change in my portfolio? If yes, please suggest good funds; ThanksTrideep Choudhary answers, exit principal and ICICI fund and invest in HDFC top 200 and DSP top 100 as that would reduce the risk of variation in returns.
ashfaq asked, Sir, I want to save Rs.10,000 per month, which is the best invesment option for me Trideep Choudhary answers, you could invest in a mix of debt instruments like debt funds, bank FDs etc and equity MFs via the SIP route.
Raj asked, I want to know about ELSS, for how many years we can invest here and which ELSS is best now a days, Is it a best option to invest here. Please advise.Trideep Choudhary answers, ELSS is an equity linked instrument which provides tax benefits under section 80C. They have a lock in of 3 years.It is a good option factoring in the power of equity and tax benefits. Some good schemes are HDFC Tax Saver and Franklin TAx Shield
sundara asked, Most of the ELSS are losing it's charm; is there any investment(Tax benefit) can replace ELSS in the near term for 3 years?Trideep Choudhary answers, FOr all its flaws ELSS has one of the lowest lock ins. Bank FD has 5 years, NSC has 6, PPF 15 years (partial withdrawl at 5). Thus even if you have chosen a wrong scheme you could exit the earliest from an ELSS
JC asked, WHY EXPERTS ADVISE TO KEEP OUT OF ULIPS? I HAVE ABOUT 1.50 LCS PER ANNUM TO INVEST PLEASE SUGGEST SOME GOOD MUTUAL FUNDS.. IS RELIANCE REGULAR SAVINGS EQITY GROWTH A GOOD OPTION? ADVISETrideep Choudhary answers, ULIPS are sold as comb ination of insurance and inveswtments. The insurance cover is maximum 5 times if it has to enjoy 80C benefit. Also ULIPS take away a lot of ur investments under mortality charges, fund management charges and commissions to agents. Thus out of 100 rupees you pay in the first year only 75 rupees on an average gets invested. In MFs on the other hand it is close to 99 rupees. As ofr reliance regular savings its a good funds and you should stay invested.
satish asked, Hi Trideep, I am new to investments and illterate on the subject. my monthly salary is Rs. 20000/- after expenses i can save 10000 a month. where can i save and how can i benefit from this. Trideep Choudhary answers, align your savings and investments to your goals and proceed accordingly. you can contact investment consultants at personal fn (022-6136 1221/22) and they would be happy to guide you.
ady asked, Dear trideep. I m a NRI guy. Want to invest some 8 lakh rupees in India for next 4-5 years. Kindly suggest some gud options exept property. ThanksTrideep Choudhary answers, invest in Equity MFs with a large cap bias.
sourav asked, Hello Sir, I am 37 years old and started investing SIP in equity diversified mutual fund of Rs.12500/ per month from December 2009. I am looking forward to invest for 23 years in mutual fund. My quarry is after how many years will I start to transfer from equity to debt fund and how much will I expect to get after 23 years of SIP investment.Trideep Choudhary answers, as a general rule your age number should be the minimum exposure to debt i.e if you reach age 40 then atleast 40% should be invested in debt instruments, however as you near your goals then you can reduce your equity exposure to under 10%.
Rambabu asked, Hello Sir,I am interested to invest in SIP with an amount of Rs 1500/- per month. Can you suggest 4 to 5 mutual funds? Trideep Choudhary answers, HDFC top 200 and DSP top 100
deepak singh asked, deepak singh says, Sir I have around 10 MFs with investment around 7 lakhs. Some of them are giving very good return but on average my returns is 15 % in two years. Please suggest Trideep Choudhary answers, compared to the markets you seem to have fared well. when we advise our clients we assume equity to give you 12-15% approx. so stay invested
praveen2 asked, Hi Sir, I am investing in HDFC ULIP and HDFC Equity Fund. Please suggest me some other funds (1 diversified, 1 balanced and 1 MIP) to make my portfolio complete.Trideep Choudhary answers, exit ULIP and invest in HDFC top 200 (Diversified) HDFC Prudence Balanced) Principal MIP Plus (MIP)
Sripada asked, I am 30 year old employee. I earn 7.5 L/annum salary after tax and other deductions. I have policies 1)1.25 L/year premium with ICICI pru Lifetime gold 2) 50 K/Year premium with ICICI smartkid 3) 1 L/year premium with LIC policies 4)3000 SIP with HDFC top-200, 2000 SIP with DSPBR top-100, 3000 SIP with sundaram midcap 5)70K in other MFs. I have FDs for 5 Lacs also. Please comment on my portfolio and how i can further diversify my investments to generate huge corpus after 10-15 years time? Thanks in advance. Trideep Choudhary answers, It would be advisable to align your investments to your goals.You can interact with investment advisers at personal fn and they shall be happy to uide you (022-6136 1221/22)
trt asked, Sir your suggestion on Birla SL BLUCHIP (G), DSP TOP 100 (G), HDFC Growth Fund, DSP BR Tiger(G), Rel Div powersector Fund (G), DSP BR Equity (G)Trideep Choudhary answers, stay invested
trt asked, Sir your suggestion on Birla SL BLUCHIP (G), DSP TOP 100 (G), HDFC Growth Fund, DSP BR Tiger(G), Rel Div powersector Fund (G), DSP BR Equity (G)Trideep Choudhary answers, stay invested
siddhu asked, According to you is it wise to invest in single premium insurance policies say for example LIC's Bima Bachat? for a working professional who already have enogh insurance say approx. 65 lacs of sum assured.Trideep Choudhary answers, the minimum cover should be 15 times your take home, if you are exceeding it then dont invest any further in insurance.
siddhu asked, Hi Sir,Before i ask my question just want to brief you my profile in short,i am 39 year old logistics professional drawing 21lacs PA.Have insurance cover since five years till 2055 approx 65 lacs(5 lacs term & rest endowment & ulip),monthly SIP in top diversified MFs(5 star rated by Valuereaseach) approx 30k per month since two years now,have two kids a son of 1 year old and daughter of six years old.Liabilities of existing house(19 lacs loan since 4 years) and additional home(loan of 22lacs since two years).Lastly want to convey i want to do do farming(already have got thru inheritance) and get retired at age of 45 hence plz advice if i have any corrections to be done in my existing financial happenings.Plz advice.Trideep Choudhary answers, you can contact a financial planner and they shall be happy to guide you. You can contact at 022-6136 1221/22 and the investment consultantwould be happy to guide you.
vikas asked, Sir, I have 3 lakhs rs at my disposal which i want to invest. I need them may in next 1-2 years for my MBA fees. As i cant go for long term bets kindly suggest some scheme, MFs etc. As markets are too volatile these days i dont want to go into schemes fully exposed to equities. Trideep Choudhary answers, go for bank FD as you need to preserve your capital.
amits asked, Where sholud I invest Rs 1 Lac for 10 years for my child's education ? Trideep Choudhary answers, you could start with an equity heavy portfolio and annually reduce your exposure to equity by say 10% per annum.
deez asked, II understand that its mandatory to invest in ULIP's for 3 years, is it advisable to take the money out after 3 years? or should i continue with the investment?Trideep Choudhary answers, explore options of "reduced paid up" policy with your insurer and invest the amount in a combination of term plan and mutual funds
deez asked, II understand that its mandatory to invest in ULIP's for 3 years, is it advisable to take the money out after 3 years? or should i continue with the investment?Trideep Choudhary answers, explore the option for "reduced paid up" with your insurer and invest in a term plan and mutual fund
ND asked, Pl suggest a life insurance policyTrideep Choudhary answers, go for term plans
TIWARI asked, HELLO SIR, KINDLY ADVISE WHETHER LUMP SUM AMOUNT IS GOOD OR SIP'S ARE GOOD FOR INVESTMENT IN MUTUAL FUNDS.PLEASE ADVISE TWO BEST INCOME FUND & TWO BALANCE FUND / EQUITY FUNDSTrideep Choudhary answers, it is always advisable to go via SIP as the load on your pocket is less, you manage volatility better and you could stay invested for longer terms. I owulod advise yo to stay away from income funds for the year. HDFC Prudence/DSP Balanced are my picks.
radr asked, Hello Sir, I have started investing SIP in HDFC TOP 200 (Rs. 1000), DSPBR TOP 100 (rs. 1000),HDFC Prudence Fund(Rs. 1000), DSP BR Balanced Fund (Rs. 1000), IDFC Premier Equity FUND (Rs. 2000).Kindly tell me about my portfolio.Trideep Choudhary answers, stay invested
pravakar asked, Hello Sir, good afternoon. i am in confusion i.e. shall i go for Recurring Deposit for 5 year with an amt of 1000 or invent 15000/yr in HDFC for 5 yrs.Trideep Choudhary answers, go for HDFC Ltd announced a Systematic Saving Plan (SSP), which will pay variable interest rates on recurring deposits to investors.
Abhishek asked, Hello Sir, I have now joined as Management trainee in a finance Co. I just want to know which scheme will be more benefetial for me for investment monthly. I am now drawing salary 15k per month. Apart from SIP is there anything benefitial? If it is SIP then should I go for SBI or any other organizations? Trideep Choudhary answers, look for the track record of the scheme apart from the fund house. youcan go for franklin bluechip, HDFC top 200 and DSP BR 100
fixit asked, hello sir,I'm planning to invest 1Lakh. Can you please suggest me which FD is best? (time frame 3-4yrs)Trideep Choudhary answers, Network 18 FD
dutta asked, is there any limit of tax benifit on pension plan, i want to invest 1 lakh every year what is my tax benifitTrideep Choudhary answers, ideally dont go for off the shelf products as your needs are unique to you, go for a customized retirement plan with a financial planner. you can contact at 022-6136 1221/22 and the consultants would be happy to answer your queries.
Trideep Choudhary says, Hi All, We have come to the end of the session. It was indeed informative for me and hope it was the same for all of you. IF you have any further queries please feel free to call 022-6136 1221/22 or email at info@personalfn.com Regards, Trideep